What Is Wi‑Fi 7? Features, Speeds, Frequencies, and Release Timeline

Wi‑Fi 7 devices are still at least a year away from official release, but the upcoming standard promises peak speeds up to four times faster than Wi‑Fi 6, making Wi‑Fi 6 the most advanced option for now.

Known as 802.11be EHT, Wi‑Fi 7 can deliver more than 40 Gbps of rated peak data rate, dramatically exceeding the 9.6 Gbps maximum of Wi‑Fi 6E and the 6.9 Gbps of Wi‑Fi 5.

The new standard builds on Wi‑Fi 6 technologies such as OFDMA, MU‑MIMO, and Target Wake Time (TWT), refining them for lower latency, higher capacity, and better power efficiency, while remaining backward‑compatible with Wi‑Fi 6, Wi‑Fi 5, and Wi‑Fi 4 devices.

Wi‑Fi 7 will operate on the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands like Wi‑Fi 6E, and introduces Multi‑Link Operation (MLO), allowing devices to send and receive data simultaneously across multiple radio bands for higher throughput and reduced latency.

Channel bandwidth will double again to 320 MHz, and the standard adds “puncturing” to mitigate interference on parts of a channel. It also supports 4096‑QAM, offering roughly a 20 % throughput increase over Wi‑Fi 6.

The final Wi‑Fi 7 specification is expected in 2024, with early pre‑certified routers and client devices possibly reaching the market by the end of 2023.